A Dangerous Game
by nikkirose4027
Summary: She had never felt  so alive. Until she woke up in a pool of blood that was not her own. Slightly Caskett. AU  T for now


**A/N: Listening to creepy music from musicals gives me ideas. Haha, what a way to start a story! But it's true; I find my plots in songs. This just happened to be… about 27 songs. So, this is just the prologue to an extended and creepy story that will probably turn out M-rated (violence only, no "fun" stuff). You might think this is weird and totally OOC, but hey, it's an idea. And if anyone guesses what will happen in the actual story, I will give you a BIG cookie. (HINT: look at a previous fanfic I wrote…)**

**EDIT 2/26/13 : THIS STORY IS NOW POST AFTER THE STORM. Edits have been made.**

**DISCLAIMER: I own nothing. Works discussed in this story belong to Andrew W. Marlowe and Robert L. Stevenson.**

**ANYWAY, after that extremely long A/N, on with the Prologue!**

**A DANGEROUS GAME: PROLOGUE**

Kate Beckett opened the door of the warehouse, entering the room with her gun drawn. Esposito, Ryan and Castle waited impatiently for her signal outside with members of SWAT. The FBI agent in charge told them that this certain serial killer would fare better if one woman entered instead of a group of men. He would most likely lash out and people could get injured. Castle grew more concerned for Kate's safety every second she was in there alone, with that mad man.

As soon as she entered, Kate looked along the wall and found a light switch. Turning it on, she could see the silhouette of the doctor calmly standing next to a table.

"NYPD. Let me see your hands…" Kate commanded in the most firm yet calm voice she could muster.

Kate heard him chortle from the back of the room, and the sound of heavy footsteps coming towards her. The doctor came forward with his hands raised, a broad smile across his face.

Kate lowered her weapon and told him in a loud voice, "Dr. John Heckl, you are under arrest for the murder of Edmund Jake, Simon Dedrick, and Damon Stiles."

The way the doctor was smiling at her made Kate feel uneasy. She could still see his sociopathic mind planning, analyzing. His dark eyes were fixated on her.

"I did it." He laughed, seeming to be proud of himself. "I finished it, Detective. It's perfect."

"Finished what, Heckl?" Kate tried to keep control of the situation, moving closer to him and reaching for her handcuffs.

"Oh, Detective." He replied in a condescending voice that she loathed. "You know there had to be a reason behind these men dying, right?"

Against her better judgment, Kate went over the case in her head. Two well built men found with self inflicted scratches and serious lacerations all over their bodies, an injection site at their neck. No matter how many toxin screens Lanie and the FBI medical examiner performed, they could not identify the substance Heckl had injected into them.

There were no leads on the suspect until the third, Damon Stiles, was found with a bullet between his eyes and a similar injection. Heckl had screwed up and left the .9mm he used in a nearby dumpster. Both her and Castle were puzzled by his sudden flub and change of MO.

Kate's curiosity got the best of her. "Why did you shoot Stiles? Why didn't you let him kill himself?"

She could see his yellowing teeth as the mad doctor beamed at her in crazed pride. "Bravo, Detective. You asked the right question."

Kate stood her ground as the doctor began to explain. "You see, my experiment had finally succeeded. Unfortunately, Damon wasn't complacent enough. He couldn't keep his mouth shut, and would have caused serious trouble for me. It doesn't matter anymore, though."

"Experiment?" She stared at the doctor's twitching hand.

"Yes, Detective. My experiment." Kate's heart raced as Dr. Heckl took another step towards her. "Tell me; are you familiar with the works of Robert Louis Stevenson?"

_That question came way out of left field._ "A little."

The predatory look in his eyes caused Kate to raise her gun two inches, aiming at John Heckl. "I recommend you become better acquainted with them in the future, for your own good."

Everything happened fast after that. Suddenly, Heckl had grabbed Kate's arm and spun her around, his right arm wrapped around her neck. Her gun slid across the floor away from them. Kate struggled against him, but was rapidly losing oxygen. The fear of death inside her kept her from screaming. He held her left arm slightly secure with his right hand gripping under her arm. Her right arm was flying wildly, trying to go back and discombobulate her attacker. He was too strong for her. The doctor whipped out a small syringe from his pocket.

"No… _please._" Kate whispered, exasperated and close to panic. "Let me go, and I'll let _you_ go. Please." The detective thought of the man she loved waiting outside the warehouse, her eyes glistening with tears.

"I'm sorry, detective." He whispered in her ear. He raised his left hand, and inserted the syringe into her skin, entering a vein in her elbow.

The sudden stabbing sensation caused Kate to gasp in pain. Heckl then proceeded to push the amber liquid into her bloodstream.

_Heat. _

The substance spread instant heat and pain through her arm, and Kate couldn't hold back a scream. As soon as it was injected, Heckl had removed it and removed his hold of her.

Kate Beckett crumpled on the ground in the fetal position, the heat spreading strongly through her veins, as well as a numbing sensation.

Afternoon light filled the windowless warehouse as the doors opened. Shots rang out around Kate. Another body joined her on the ground, and she was greeted with the wide-eyed dead face of Dr. John Heckl. She was floating in and out of consciousness.

"KATE!" She heard Castle yell in desparation.

He ran and knelt over her, pushing her onto her back. He pulled the hair out of her face and tried to meet her eyes, which were dilated.

"Kate, hey! Stay with me, okay? Come on, Kate." He lightly tapped her face, cradling her head. His mind went to last spring and her dance with death. _No. Not again. Not now._

Kate woke up suddenly, with Castle in her face and tapping her cheek. He looked positively terrified and on the brink of tears.

She found her voice after a moment. "It's okay, Castle. I'm fine."

He leaned back to sit on the ground with her. Kate tried to sit up, but fell on her back seething in pain when she went to put weight on her left arm.

"Shit…" She whispered, lifting her arm to inspect it. Sure enough, there was an injection mark and a developing bruise on the inside of her elbow.

Rick grabbed her arm and seemed to shudder in shock. He swore under his breath and tried to call over a medic.

"Hey! Can we get some help over here?" He yelled.

"Rick," She whispered, trying to remove her arm from his grasp. "It's okay. I'm fine. Only a bruise."

He gave her an incredulous look and pointed at the spot. "Kate, cut the crap. He injected you with the stuff he gave his other victims!"

Something inside begged her to lie to him. Don't tell him about the spreading heat through her veins, about the slight feeling of euphoria and lightheadedness she was experiencing.

"No liquid went in, Castle. All he did was put me in a headlock and stab me." The lies poured out so easily. "He shrunk back from me when I screamed."

Castle regarded her with caution. It sounded like the truth, yet it wasn't.

"Then why were you on the ground in pain?" He continued.

Anger rose in Kate. "Did you hear what I said? I was in a _headlock! _I had lost oxygen, I was passing out! Why are you interrogating _me_?" She lashed out, ripping her arm from his grasp.

"Calm down, Kate." Her boyfriend whispered, watching how members of SWAT searching the area looked over after Kate's outburst.

"I believe you, okay?" He rubbed her thigh, reassuringly. Without thinking, Kate covered his hand and gripped it tight. He flipped their hands to hold hers properly. The world around them dissipated and she absorbed his strength and composure.

Although Gates was not there, she was still wary about the fact that they might be found out by themother cops at the scene. But still, it was better now that she could accept his affection.

"I'm sorry, Rick. I…" She met his eyes. "I guess I'm still in panic mode, and I don't want to be poked and prodded just yet." After a slightly shaky breath, she offered him a sad smile.

A short comfortable silence passed between them.

"I'm sorry they made you come in alone." He admitted, with his eyes dark with regret.

Kate squeezed his hand once more and then released it. "I'm okay, Castle, truly."

After a moment, he conceded and nodded. She would have this one.

"Do you need any help?" A seemingly inexperienced medic had finally come over to check on Kate. Rick simply looked at him and shook his head. Kate shot a look of pure love at the back of the man's head.

As the confused medic walked away, Rick got up from the floor and offered his hand to Kate. She took it gratefully and let him pull her off the floor.

"Thank you," She whispered.

"You owe me more coffee, Detective." He tried to bring humor back into the conversation, and the smirk on Kate's face was a clear sign of his success.

Even though she expected the lightheadedness to return upon standing, Kate truly felt fine. Even, happy. She looked over to see the rest of her team coming towards her.

Ryan and Esposito had finally enough time to see that their boss was really alright. "How you feeling, Beckett?" Esposito asked with more than a hint of concern.

"I'm fine, guys. Thanks." She smiled, staying strong.

"At least we got that son of a bitch." Ryan added with a proud smirk. Kate just nodded, and she turned to her partner.

"Let's get outta here." She said quietly.

Castle simply raised his eyebrows and began leading her out of the warehouse with his hand at the small of her back. "Twist my arm. Let's go home."

Kate chuckled nervously, from the joke and the panic wearing off. Castle's warm hand at her back also helped keep her calm, and she unconciously huddled up to him, seeking more of his comfort.

Finally, the case was put to rest. Another psycho off of Kate's beloved streets of New York.

But the injection site was now beginning to ache, and Kate wondered about the amber liquid that was now spreading through her veins...

And what would become of her?

**To be Continued?**

**So, thoughts? Reviews are my crack, FYI.**

**(PLANNING ON UPDATING A LOT VERY SOON~ 2/26/13)**


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